Unruly student tased by Huntsville School Resource Officer

Madison County Sheriff's Office statement on "an unruly juvenile" that was tased at school.

MADISON COUNTY, Ark. (KNWA/KFTA) — The Madison County Sheriff’s office released a statement regarding an incident that occurred at Huntsville High School on February 9 after receiving a call from a teacher requesting assistance in dealing with “an unruly juvenile.”

The office was called at approximately 9:52 a.m. and a School Resource Officer (SRO) was dispatched to the scene and went directly to the teacher’s classroom, where he was redirected to the Administration Office.

The juvenile had gone there and refused to give his name to the SRO officer. The SRO officer then escorted the juvenile to his office “after repeated attempts to identify the student, who continually refused to cooperate or give his name and would only rant about his teacher ‘getting in his face’ and direct[ed] profanity towards her.”

The officer then told the juvenile that he was going to take him to the courthouse. When instructed to stand up, “a physical altercation ensued,” at which point the juvenile was warned that he was going to be tased.

The report states that “he continued to resist and the taser was deployed in the juvenile’s thigh,” after which the juvenile was handcuffed and the SRO requested additional officers.

Additional officers arrived on the scene and the juvenile was “picked up from the floor and placed in a chair, continued to be uncooperative and refused to give his name.” The juvenile received minor abrasions on his nose and right cheek during the altercation.

Principle Enix identified the juvenile as a student at the High School. Emergency Medical Services was called, responded to, and examined the juvenile, determining that medical attention was not required. The juvenile’s Guardian arrived on the scene and the student was released into his custody.

The report states that the Juvenile will be investigated for a violation of Arkansas Statute 6-17-106, Insult or abuse of a teacher.

The Guardian made a complaint of the use of excessive force by the School Resource Officer. A request for assistance was initiated through the Washington County Prosecutor’s Officer for the Arkansas State Police to investigate the incident.

At the request of the school, the Resource Officer has been reassigned, pending the outcome of the investigation.